Brotherly Love
by dreamerinfic
Summary: A multi-chapter story following Joshua Smith and Thaddeus Jones as they run into a relative from the past, take a farming job, and find themselves in the middle of trouble. Can they figure out their feelings, reconcile with their past, build a relationship, and solve a mystery?
1. Chapter 1

They sat quietly in the corner of the saloon, both drinking their beers. Two trail worn cowboys, their hats resting on the table in front of them. The man watched them carefully, noting the brown hair and brown eyes of the older looking one, his eyes were ever watchful, his gun tied low on his thigh, his black hat worn ragged. The younger one still had the appearance of a boy with his curly blonde hair and his piercing blue eyes. The stranger studied them, taking in details that no normal stranger would bother to notice, the way they talked quietly together, with an ease that spoke of a shared childhood, the cautious way each of them glanced towards the door occasionally, the shrewdness in the older man's eyes, the dangerous way the younger one's hand hovered near his holster.

He'd been watching them all day, analyzing every movement, every word they spoke. They didn't call themselves Heyes and Curry, they had introduced themselves as Smith Jones. But there was something about them, a familiarity, a nagging idea that he knew them. And so he'd kept seeking them out, first in the café, then in the saloon. He'd watched Smith play poker, watched him win with ease. He'd noted how Jones hung back, still in the eyeline of his partner, there to step in if trouble broke out. Over the years when he'd read about them in the news and in the dime store novels, this was how he'd pictured them.

He shook his head and passed a disbelieving hand over his face. It was impossible, wasn't it? After all these years he had never dared to hope that he would run into them. He took a deep drink of his beer, trying to steel himself with courage. What would he say? Would they even remember him? Were they dangerous? Was it wise to approach them?

Then he saw the two get up to leave. As they exited the saloon, the stranger made a decision, it was now or never…If they were who he thought they were then this might be his only chance.

He followed them out the swinging doors and quietly strode down the street a good distance behind. Wisps of conversation drifted back.

"Nice, quiet town, isn't it?"

"Too far east, too close to home."

"What are you talkin' about? We're nowhere near Kansas."

"Close enough."

He was getting closer. He opened his mouth, about to speak, about to call attention to himself. A door opened behind him, he heard footsteps as someone stepped into the street, he kept walking, keeping pace with the two cowboys. And then he heard it.

"Curry!" A loud voice boomed out.

The curly haired man turned sharply, his hand gripping the but of his gun.

"John Curry! Hold up John, I need to talk to you."

Blue eyes met blue eyes and held there for just a moment…but it was long enough.

John turned to see the sheriff running towards him.

"Hello Sheriff, how can I help you?"

"You still need help out at your farm?" the sheriff asked. John nodded in response.

"That's good, glad to hear it. Think I might have someone for you. My wife's nephew up in Brownville is interested in the job. Might take him a few weeks to get packed up and moved down here though. Think you might want to take him on?"

"If you recommend him that's good enough for me. Go ahead and write him and I'll take him on when he gets here. 'Til then I guess I'll just have to make do."

The Sheriff nodded and then shifted his focus to the two men who still stood nearby, the younger one's hand still resting on his gun.

"John, do you know these boys?"

John Curry cut a glance towards them and shook his head slowly, "No, can't say as I do."

"You boys want something?" the Sheriff asked suspiciously.

"No sir," the one with the black hat answered immediately, "We're just passing through. Just left the saloon over there and headed out to the stable."

"Well, if that's true you better tell your friend there to get his hand away from that gun, less he's planning on getting it shot off."

A subtle sideways glance in his partner's direction revealed that his hand was indeed still clutching his gun. A less subtle wack to his arm got him to move his hand away as the Sheriff had instructed.

"What's the matter with him?" the Sheriff asked.

"Him? Oh nothing he's just a bit quiet. Says I do enough talking for the both of us," the stranger thrust a hand in the Sheriff's direction, "Name's Joshua Smith, my friend here is Thaddeus Jones."

After reluctantly shaking the offered hand the line of questioning continued, "He a gunfighter?"

"What?" Joshua Smith's voice seemed to crack nervously on the word, "No…Like I said, Sheriff, we're just passing through."

"Hmmm…Well, I'll just be checking my wanted posters to make sure. You two best ride out tonight. I don't want no trouble. We're a peaceable town."

"Uh…Sheriff," John Curry joined the conversation hesitantly, looking back and forth between the lawman and the pair that he so desperately wanted to speak to, "I was actually about to offer these men a job on my farm. I noticed them earlier and thought they looked like they could use work. I'm mighty desperate for some help and until your nephew gets here I'm just plain outta luck. I figure these two could help me out 'til then."

The Sheriff shook his head, "John, these two look dangerous to me. Seems to me they'd rob you before they'd help you on the farm. Just look at those guns they're wearing, tied down like that. These two aren't fit to be out there unsupervised with your wife and son."

John turned and made eye contact with both of them once more, confirming what he'd known all along. It didn't matter what names they'd used, he knew they were who he thought they were. He'd be damned if he'd let this opportunity to make things right slip past him.

"Sheriff, I consider myself a pretty good judge of character and I think these boys deserve a chance. If they're looking for work I'm willing to take them on."

"Well boys," the Sheriff began skeptically, "Are you looking for work?"

Joshua Smith closed one eye, cocked his head, and looked up at his friend's slack jawed face, "Thaddeus, are we looking for work?"

Thaddeus was slow to respond, but eventually he worked something up, muttering, "Um…Yeah."

His friend nodded briefly, then looked back at the lawman and the farmer with the familiar name, "We'll take you up on that offer Mr. Curry. We'll just go get the horses."

"I'll meet you behind the stables," John responded.

"And I'll be checking in on you boys," the Sheriff warned as he turned to go.

John Curry watched as Joshua Smith turned Thaddeus Jones around and began to pull him towards the stables. Feeling tears form in his eyes he reached up and quickly wiped them away.

"Was that really who I think it was? John Curry…alive. Who would've thought it?" Heyes asked in disbelief as he saddled his horse. Not hearing a reply he turned to find his partner sitting on a nearby hay bail. "Are you gonna saddle your horse or am I gonna have to do that too?"

"I just…I just can't believe it. My brother's been alive all this time."

"I know, it's pretty hard to get your mind around, but you've got to snap outta this. Now get up and saddle your horse before I leave you here."

The Kid remained seated, still stubbornly staring straight ahead, "Heyes, I'm gonna kill him."

"What?" Heyes exclaimed incredulously, "Why would you do that? Until ten minutes ago you thought he was dead. Don't make any sense to kill him so soon."

The Kid sighed and stood to gather his saddle, "Aren't you mad at him at all?"

"Mad? Why would I be mad at him? He wasn't even there, he was off fighting in the war." Heyes tried to reason with his partner, "Kid, John didn't cause our parent's to get killed, he didn't send us to an orphanage, he isn't the reason we became outlaws. So why is it that you're angry at him?"

The Kid just continued to saddle his horse in silence. He was still wrestling with his own feelings. Shock and anger had gripped him hard since he'd seen his long lost brother standing in the street. He couldn't yet put words to his feelings, couldn't explain them to Heyes.

As if sensing he needed his own personal space to deal with his own personal demons his partner finished his work and began to move outside. "You come on out when you're ready," Heyes called from the stable door.

Kid Curry stood alone in the stable, memories of his home in Kansas swirling in his head. Memories he'd long since buried. His brother leaving for war, still a boy, but at fifteen he'd set off, determined to join the fight. The Kid had been only ten years old. He remembered his mother crying that night, telling his father that she had a feeling she would never see him again. But there he'd been tonight, not ten foot from him. While his mother and father lay buried next to their burned out farmhouse just over the Kansas border.

He leaned his forehead wearily against the horses neck. What choice did he have? He had to go with him, he had to find out why he'd left them so long ago…and why he hadn't comeback. Outside he heard the wheels of a wagon approaching the back of the stable.

"Hello, Mr. Curry," Heyes greeted the newcomer alone, Kid still slowly saddling his horse, presumably deciding whether he was angry or confused at meeting his brother again on the street of a one-horse Nebraska cow-town.

John reached down to shake his hand, "Good evening, Mr. Smith." There was a long pause as the other man wracked his brain, trying to decide how to broach the subject of their real relationship. "Mr. Smith…Joshua, I am right about who you and your friend really are, aren't I?"

Heyes climbed into the saddle, slanting a meaningful look at the other man,span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt;" "Mr. Curry, we're still in the middle of town and the Sheriff's not too keen on my partner and I. Apparently he thinks we look like a couple of outlaws. So for the record, I'm Joshua Smith and my partner is Thaddeus Jones, and that's all I'm gonna say on the subject right now. That ok with you?"

John Curry nodded warily. If he was right and these men were his relations then they really were a couple of outlaws and had cause to be cautious of the Sheriff. Should he really be taking these men home to his wife and child? But there was no going back now. This…Joshua Smith, or Hannibal Heyes if he had guessed right, was ready to ride out with him. But where was the other one…where was Jed?

"Um….Where's your friend?"

"Probably still saddling his horse. Must be setting a record for the slowest time ever. I suspect he's thinking, got a lot to think about right now."/p

A nervous chuckle escaped him. He remembered his cousin's banter as a child. He could keep the bullies busy for hours with some well-placed words.

"Are you two sure you won't mind farming for a few weeks? There'll be a lot of hard work involved."

"I hate farming," came Kid's brusque reply.

"Well, so glad you decided to join us. You finally get that horse saddled? Thought he might die of boredom waiting for you to get done," Heyes said with a smile.

"Shut up," Kid rejoined.

"We don't mind farming at all, Mr. Curry," Heyes replied as if Kid had never spoken, "A little honest, hard work is just what we're looking for."

"Alright boys, let's get going then." And with that John Curry set the wagon in motion and headed down the road out of town, Joshua Smith and Thaddeus Jones riding alongside.

They'd gone only a few miles when Heyes broke the silence again, "How far out of town is your farm, Mr. Curry?"

"Will you stop calling him Mr. Curry," the Kid put in angrily.

"Well, that's his name ain't it?"

The Kid rolled his eyes and reigned in his horse. John looked back at the scene and stopped the wagon. It was time to solve the mystery and find out once and for all.

"Boys, let's have that talk now." John looked down and took a moment to gather his thoughts, "When I was a boy I went off to war…My entire family was killed in the Border Wars while I was gone. I think you might have a similar story."

"Heyes and the Kid made eye contact. Heyes nodded slowly, "Yes John, we do. Our family was killed in the Border Wars as well…except…one. We thought he died in the war. It appears we were wrong."

"Hannibal?" John asked, though he didn't need to anymore, he knew without a shadow of a doubt that this was his cousin.

Heyes dismounted as John climbed down from the wagon, "Yes, it's me. Good to see you again John. I just can't believe you're alive. We always thought we'd lost you too." The two embraced warmly. John wiped tears away, while Heyes blinked rapidly, trying to hide the wetness in his own eyes.

"Jed?" John asked cautiously, realizing there was something wrong, "But it's not Jed anymore, is it? You're Kid now."

Kid remained stubbornly seated on his horse, not answering.

Heyes walked over to him and put a hand on his arm, "Kid, please. I told you before, there's no reason to be mad. Can't you just be happy that your brother's alive and that we've found him?"

The Kid shook his head, "No, I can't. I don't know why. I'm not like you. I can't just explain how I feel."

"At least say hello to him. Once we get to the farm we'll be Smith and Jones again."

John shook his head, "What do you mean? My wife, Sarah, she knows about Kid Curry being my brother, you don't have to worry about her."

"I know John, it's not your wife we're worried about," Heyes began to explain, "It's just that we gotta be careful. Especially with the Sheriff suspicious about us already. It'd just be safer for everyone if we use the other names. That way there'll be less chance for slip ups when the Sheriff visits."

John nodded his understanding, then looked up at his baby brother, "Jed, it's been a long time. You were just a boy last time I saw you. I can't believe it's been so long."

"Yeah, it has," the Kid answered simply.

John glanced nervously at Heyes, receiving a nod of encouragement he tried again, "How've you been?"

Kid just sat there, his anger rolling off of him in waves. When at last he spoke it was in a cold, emotionless voice, "I've been an orphan and an outlaw. I'm not your baby brother anymore, John." Immediately Kid kicked his horse into motion taking off down the road without them.

"Kid…Kid!" Heyes called after him. The Kid kept on riding. Heyes sighed heavily and shook his head. "Did I mention that he's stubborn?"

"Nothing's changed then, he was always as stubborn as a mule," John responded.

Heyes gave his cousin a long, measuring look, his eyes full of sadness, "Everything's changed, John…everything."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

When they caught up to Kid he was waiting at the top of a small hill, looking down on a modest farm. The ramshackle barn and unplowed fields revealed a place in need of a lot of work.

"Well boys, there it is. I know it doesn't look like much. I've let it go a bit since…well…since…Marcus…," his voice trailed off.

Heyes gave him a curious sidelong glance, "Marcus?" he prompted.

"My oldest boy, we lost him a few months ago. Fever took him."

John went on quickly, before either man could utter any pitying or comforting words, "We'd best get on down there, Sarah's probably got dinner waiting on the table."

The three men were just riding into the yard when a young voice rang out, "Papa, Papa," the boy yelled. John climbed quickly from the wagon and caught the boy up in a tight embrace.

Heyes and Curry dismounted just as a woman came out of the house, "You're home just in time for dinner, and I see you brought friends. Who's this, John?"

"Sarah, these boys are going to be helping out for a few weeks. Joshua Smith & Thaddeus Jones, this is my wife Sarah and my son Gabe."

Heyes and Curry both tipped their hats and greeted Sarah. When Heyes turned his attention to the boy he was struck by the boy's blond curls and blue eyes. He looked over at his partner and saw that the same thought had occurred to him. Gabe was the picture of Kid when he was a young boy.

"Do you have enough to feed a few extra mouths tonight," John asked his wife. She nodded, "Sure, just give me a few minutes. You two can put your horses in the barn and you'll find a room with a few cots for you to bed down in. I'll get you some blankets that you can take back with you after dinner."

Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry walked their horses to the barn in silence. It wasn't until they entered the tiny room where they would be spending the next few weeks that Kid finally spoke, "Heyes what are we doin' here?" he asked as he threw his saddle bag down on the dusty cot.

"Well, up until a few hours ago you were the only relative I had. And since I'm not too fond of you right now, I aim to get to know John again and see if he's any more bearable."

"How can you joke about this?" Kid angrily erupted. "I'm so mad I could spit fire and you're just going along with everything he says like nothin' ever happened."

"Kid, nothin' did happen," Heyes shook his head, "Why are you acting like this? What are you so upset about? John didn't kill our parents. John wasn't responsible for anything that's happened to us since. What is it you think he did?"

Kid just stared at him for a moment, his eyes flashing fire. He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it, then he just turned and started for the door.

"Where're you goin'?"

"I'm hungry, I'm goin' to eat," Kid threw back over his shoulder.

Heyes just shrugged his shoulders and started after him. One thing about the Kid, no matter what was botherin' him, he never lost his appetite.

The boys entered the house together, greeting John, Sarah and Gabe with their hats in their hands. Sarah led them to a table laden with fried chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans. It looked like a feast to two saddle worn ex-outlaws who'd not had a home cooked meal in a very long time.

The little group sat down and John led them all in grace. As food was passed around Sarah began to make conversation. "So what are you two boys doin' in these parts?"

"We're just passin' through ma'am. We travel around a lot, pick up odd jobs here and there," Heyes answered for the both of them.

"What kind of work do you generally do?" Sarah asked innocently.

Heyes flashed his most charming grin and gave his usual answer, "As little as possible."

The Kid shook his head as Sarah's eyes widened in disapproval, "What he means ma'am is that we've done a lot of different kinds of jobs, but never really settled on one thing; a lot of cattle drives, ranching, farming, odds and ends."

It was the most Kid Curry had said since meeting John in the street. Heyes was encouraged that maybe the Kid was softening towards the situation and had finally let his anger go. But then maybe it was just the food. Kid was always in a better mood when he was eating.

"Where are you two from?" Sarah continued.

"Kansas," Heyes answered honestly as he took another biscuit and buttered it.

"Oh, what a coincidence, John is from Kansas as well. Maybe you lived close. Your families might have known each other."

Heyes glanced at John, before answering as casually as possible, "We're orphans ma'am. Grew up in the Valparaiso Home for Waywards."

"Oh, how awful. I'm so sorry."

"What's a wayward?" Gabe inquired curiously.

"Gabe," John warned the boy.

"It's ok," Kid told the young boy, "I always wondered that myself."

"A wayward is a child that doesn't have a mother or father," Sarah explained.

"Well, that's partially true, I suppose," Heyes added. "A wayward is a troublemaker, Gabe; someone who's willful, disobedient, and unruly…and on top of that has no parents."

"Were you all those things," young Gabe asked, mystified as he looked between the two men.

"Well, if we weren't when we went in, we were when we came out," Kid answered matter of factly.

"Oh don't worry ma'am," Heyes rushed to reassure Sarah, "We're on the straight and narrow now. You have nothing to worry about from us. We'll work hard and do our best to help out you and your husband as much as we can while we're here. There won't be no trouble from us."

She laughed, "I wasn't worried boys. I'm sure you'll be a great help to John. And I'm so grateful to both of you."

The rest of the meal was filled with idle chatter about the weather, the farm, and Gabe's lessons. Afterwards Heyes and Curry helped Sarah clear the table and clean up. She excused herself to gather linens and blankets for them to take out to their bunks and John sent Gabe off to bed.

"Thank you boys for answering all of their questions like you did. I appreciate you being honest."

Heyes nodded in response. Kid stood with his hat in his hand looking everywhere but in his brother's eyes.

"You were being honest, weren't you boys? Are you really on the straight and narrow?"

"Yes, we are. At least we try," Heyes reassured him.

Sarah came back then and they said their goodnights. "I'll see you two at daybreak. Sarah will fix us breakfast and then we can start making some much needed repairs around the place," John Curry instructed.

As the couple sat together later in the night Sarah sipped her coffee and reflected on the men she had met, "I like those two, John. I think they'll be a lot of help to you. Such a shame about their childhood though. It's terrible they had to grow up that way. I wouldn't ever want that to happen to our children. I think of Gabe and what would happen if something happened to us. He'd have no one. Before he and Marcus would've had each other, but now…he'd be all alone. They'd send him off to a place like that."

John sat quietly, looking down at his cup of coffee. He shook his head, guilt nearly overwhelming him. He buried his face in his hands.

"Darling what is it?" Sarah asked, her voice filled with concern, "Is it Marcus, are you thinking of him?"

John shook his head again. "Do you remember when I told you I had a brother?" He waited for his wife to nod and then continued, "Oh Sarah…it was him…he was here tonight. You met him."

His wife's eyes widened in understanding, "Thaddeus."

"Yes, Thaddeus…Jed, my baby brother."

"But…didn't you tell me that your brother was…Kid Curry?" John nodded. "But that means the other one is…"

"Hannibal Heyes," John finished for her. "He's my cousin."

"Oh John. I can't believe this. Heyes and Curry…here. But they seemed so nice, so sincere."

"I'm not sure yet whether we can trust them or not, but I asked Heyes tonight if he was telling the truth about being straight now. He said yes. I think I believe him. They were never bad boys…Not when I knew them at least."

"But they spent all that time in the Home for Waywards. They said themselves it changed them."

John looked at her sadly, "Jed said as much this afternoon, and again at dinner. He told me that he wasn't my baby brother anymore. He's angry with me, Sarah. I'm not sure why. I'm not even certain that he knows why. But I think he may believe I abandoned them."

"Did you abandon them?"

"Sarah!" John protested.

"Well, they did grow up in an orphanage." Sarah reasoned.

"I didn't know that. I had no idea what had happened to them until tonight. I thought they'd both died with the rest of my family until I started seeing the wanted posters. I feel so terrible, if I had only known. Maybe I could've stopped all this."

His wife shook her head and laid a comforting hand on his shoulder, "You couldn't have known. You can't blame yourself." She glanced towards the room where Gabe slept, "But they are outlaws…Do you think we should take some precautions?"

The next morning Heyes and Curry woke up to a rooster crowing the dawn of a new day.

Kid Curry moaned and rolled over. Heyes sat up and rubbed his eyes wearily. "I forgot how much I hate chickens," he complained. "Come on Kid, get up. Maybe Sarah'll have eggs and bacon."

Kid moaned again in response. Heyes got up and dressed, strapped on his holster and grabbed his hat. "Kid, breakfast. You like breakfast, remember?"

Getting no answer Heyes finished his preparations and headed over to the house. The smell of bacon greeted him as he walked in the door.

"That smells heavenly, Mrs. Curry."

"Thank you Joshua, and good morning to you. Where's your friend this morning?"

"Oh he'll be along. Generally he don't like mornings, and he's not too thrilled about farming either, so I suspect Thaddeus isn't in a hurry to start the day."

By the time Kid joined them Heyes and John had downed much of their breakfast and Gabe had already hurried off to school.

Kid mumbled a greeting and immediately began to dig into his food.

Heyes shot a grin in his direction, maybe Sarah's home cooking would melt away Kid Curry's anger.

"Boys, now that you're both here, I'd like to discuss something with you." Sarah looked between the two men and then went on, "I'd appreciate it if you'd not wear your guns around the place. With Gabe being so young and impressionable, I think it'd be best if he not see you with your holsters on all time."

Heyes nodded "No problem, ma'am." Then he glanced at the Kid, who was taking a long time to chew his bite of food.

"Thaddeus," Heyes prompted.

Kid looked down at his food and took a deep breath, "The thing is, I've been wearing this gun so long that it's like it's a part of me. I don't think I can…I feel sorta…naked…without it."

Heyes rolled his eyes, "This sounds familiar."

Sighing heavily Kid looked up at Sarah, "What I'm getting at ma'am is maybe we can come to some kind of compromise."

Heyes shook his head, "Careful Thaddeus, she may make you do a jig, and you know how that turned out last time."

A biscuit hit Heyes between the eyes.

"Sometimes I hate you," Kid said angrily.

Calmly placing the offending biscuit back on the table Heyes answered, "Well that's good. I was starting to feel left out."

Kid shoved his hat on his head and pushed his chair back. "Thank you for the food ma'am," he mumbled, then slammed out the door. Heyes watched him go and turned back to Sarah and John, "I'm sorry. That was my fault. He's not usually like this. I'll talk to him about the gun, it'll be ok."

"Does he usually do what you tell him?" John asked.

He shrugged his shoulders, "Well…yeah."

John let out a chuckle, "You two always were inseparable, even as little kids."

Heyes sent a nervous look towards Sarah. "It's alright Mr. Heyes, John told me who you are."

"John," Heyes raised his voice in frustration, "We talked about this. You said you weren't going to tell her."

"I owe it to her, Hannibal. She needed to know that I may have put us all in danger."

"Danger," Heyes repeated, frustration still lacing the word, "From us?"

John shrugged nervously, his eyes darting towards his wife, who stood twisting a dish towel in her hands, her eyes wide.

Heyes sensed their fear, setting his hat far back on his head, he stood, "Kid was right, maybe we shouldn't have come here."

"No, that's not what we meant," John reached out to grip his arm, "I want you here, I need to make my peace with you…with Jed. You're the only family I have left. Please don't go yet."

"But you think we're dangerous," Heyes said slowly, shaking his head sadly, "I know we're outlaws and we're not like you. But we don't hurt people. In all the trains and banks we've robbed we've never killed anyone. And that's a feat when you're trying to lead a gang that don't always share the same feelings on the matter."

"Does Jed…Kid share your feelings on the matter?" John asked pointedly.

"Of course he does," Heyes answered too quickly.

"He's a gunfighter," John's voice was filled with doubt.

An uneasy look passed over Heyes face as he stared into his cousin's eyes. "He's not a gunfighter…He's…He's…," he struggled for words to defend his partner, then waved his hand in disgust and went on, "He's fast with a gun, there are always people looking for him trying to prove they're faster. Kid's been through a lot and yes, he's had to kill people. But he's not heartless, he's only done it when there was no other choice, when they would've kept coming for him. Being good with a gun doesn't make him dangerous."

John watched his cousin's dark eyes as he spoke, felt the passion behind the words. He knew he spoke the truth, or what he believed was the truth anyway. He sighed in relief and nodded. Everything would be ok.

"You'll stay then?" Sarah asked tentatively.

Heyes nodded, "Yeah, we'll stay. And I'll talk to Kid about the gun, he's a bit touchy about being without it, but I'm sure we can work something out."

As Heyes looked between his cousin and his wife he was struck by another thought. They were dangerous to them, just not in the way John had thought. If anyone found out that Heyes and Curry were related to them their lives would never be the same again.

He gave them a serious look, "But we are dangerous to you and your family. If we're found out, then your lives here will never be the same."

"We're willing to take that risk. I've just lost my son, Hannibal. After taking something so precious from me, God's given me the chance to get something back that I thought I'd lost. I don't want to miss my chance."

Heyes nodded, his brow furrowed in thought, "Maybe I can lessen the risk a little." He turned around to look through the doorway at the barn, "Listen John, I know this is our first day of work and all, but do you think you can do without me. I need to go into town."

"Uh…sure," John nodded numbly. "Should I ask what you're planning to do?"

"No, probably not," Heyes answered. Tipping his hat to the two of them he turned to go.

He'd saddled his horse and gotten out of the barn without Kid noticing him, but now that he was ready to leave Kid was pestering him with questions.

"Where are you goin?" Kid yelled up at him as he started out of the yard.

"Town, you don't mind, do you? It's just for the day, I'll be back tonight."

"What are you gonna do in town?" Kid asked incredulously.

"We need to send Lom a telegram to let him know where we are."

"That's not a good enough reason to ride out like this. What are you really gonna do?" Kid persisted.

"Nothin' Kid, don't worry. John's told Sarah about us and they're fine with everything. Just do whatever John needs today and try to be respectful. Ok."

"I'm comin' with you."

"No, you're not," Heyes kicked his horse into motion.

"You stay away from that Sheriff, he doesn't need another look at you."

Heyes waved his hand in response and rode out.

Kid stood in the yard staring after him. What was he supposed to do now? He took off his hat and threw it on the ground in frustration. He looked back towards the house…it was time to start the work day.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

They had worked for hours in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Kid had taken off his holster and draped it over a nearby fencepost. John found himself stealing glances at his brother when he wasn't looking, watching for signs of the boy he knew.

"What are you looking at?"

John started, "Sorry, I didn't realize I was staring."

"Staring at the outlaw," Kid ground out.

John shook his head, "No, at my kid brother."

"I told you I'm not that person anymore."

"I'm not the same person either, Jed. I just want a chance for us to get to know each other again, that's all."

Kid simply shook his head and went back to work.

His brother sighed deeply and pulled out another nail in the dilapidated fence. Next to him he heard Jed pounding a hammer with what seemed like more force than necessary.

"Owwwww!" A few choice swearwords followed the younger Curries exclamation of pain.

John looked over at him, "You ok? You hit your finger or something?"

"What gave you that idea?" the outlaw stuck his injured finger in his mouth.

"Let me see it."

Kid took his finger out of his mouth and hefted the hammer again, "No, it's fine. I don't need babying, I'm a hardened outlaw, remember?"

"I never said that, Jed. Don't put words in my mouth out of anger. Heyes has told me that you two are straight now, and I believe him."

Kid rolled his eyes, "Cause if Heyes says it it must be true."

John shook his head in frustration, "Is there anything that I can say to you that would make things alright?"

Kid grunted in frustration and shook his head, hammering again with all his might.

"That's what I thought," John muttered and went back to pulling out nails. This was going to be a long day.

At dinner that night the Kid pushed his food around on his plate, barely eating. As soon as Gabe went off to bed Kid retrieved his gun and took up watch on the porch.

When John joined him he found him sitting there cleaning his gun, his watchful eyes trained on the road.

"You look worried, Jed."

"Yeah, probably cause I am," Kid answered, wiping down his gun with an expert hand.

"He's only been gone an afternoon. Can't Heyes take care of himself?"

Kid let out a short laugh, "Heyes can get in a lot of trouble in one afternoon. One of the reasons we ride together is to watch each other's backs. When I'm not there to look after him I tend to get nervous about it."

John nodded, "I'm so glad you two have been there for each other. Have you been together since it happened?"

The fears for his partner made the prospect of opening up to his brother seem less daunting. Kid shrugged, "Pretty much. There was a time when I got old enough to think for myself and decided I didn't like being told what to do all the time that we split up for a while. By the time we met up again I had a reputation with a gun and Heyes had learned how to crack a safe. We decided to join forces. Figured it'd be less likely one of us would get shot if we were together."

"You started riding with the Devil's Hole gang after that?"

"Yeah," Kid affirmed, sliding his gun back into the holster on his hip, "Heyes became the leader of the gang and I guess you know what happened after that."

"I've read a few of the dime novels."

Kid gave him a skeptical look, "Don't believe everything you read."

The sound of approaching hooves in the distance caught Kid's attention. John strained to see who it was as Kid stood and drew his gun. At last Hannibal Heyes came into view, riding up to the porch and dismounting.

Curry holstered his gun. "Where've you been," he asked his partner testily.

"Town, don't you remember?" Heyes answered obviously.

"I know that, but what did you do in town?" Kid persisted.

Heyes came up the steps and handed his partner two folded pieces of paper. Kid opened one.

"Our wanted posters?"

"Well I just thought if he didn't have those to compare our descriptions to, maybe we'd go unnoticed a little longer," Heyes explained.

"You broke into the Sheriff's office?!" John asked in disbelief.

"No, I went in through the window after the deputy locked up."

The Kid rolled his eyes at Heyes reasoning where breaking and entering was concerned.

"Was there a safe in there?" Kid asked knowingly.

Heyes eyes lit up, "1876 Centennial," he said excitedly, "the tumblers had just the right amount of…"

"Heyes!" Kid chastised.

"What?" He said confusedly, "Oh…," as realization hit, his eyes widened in mock innocence. "I didn't…I just took a quick listen, that's all."

"Yeah, sure," Kid replied with a hint of sarcasm. "What was inside?"

"Two sets of keys, a few deeds, and an old ledger."

"So nothing interesting then?" Kid said with a grin.

"Oh, not in the safe, but I did find something interesting…we'll talk about it later, though," Heyes answered cryptically.

John watched mystified as the two of them bantered lightly about breaking and entering and safecracking. Somehow now the dime novels seemed more real than ever.

Just then Sarah came out of the house, "Mr. Heyes, so good to have you back with us. Would you like something to eat before you turn in for the night?"

"Oh no ma'am. I wouldn't want to put you out. I had something earlier in town. I'll be fine 'til morning."

"He's not a big one for eating, ma'am. Most times if I didn't remind him he'd just go right on without any meals at all," Kid explained.

"But I do have him. And he reminds me…a lot," Heyes put in with a grin. "Come on Kid, let's turn in." Both tipped their hats to Sarah and then turned to make their way over to the barn. John watched them go, his eyes on the wanted posters held loosely in his brother's hand. He wondered what else Heyes had found. What was it he had promised to talk to Jed about later? John scratched his head and looked out into the night. In the darkness of his minds eyes he could see Marcus's face. He closed his eyes and hung his head. What would his son think of all this?

"John, come to bed," Sarah beckoned him from the doorway.

He nodded and forcibly put away his thoughts of Marcus, of Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry, and took his wife's hand. He needed to forget…at least for a while.

"Ok Heyes, what is it?" Kid asked, as soon as they were alone.

Heyes sat down on his cot and removed his jacket, pulling out another wanted poster. "I found this one in the top drawer of the sheriff's desk. It's got his writing all over it. It appears he was very interested in this wanted poster."

Kid took it from him and began to read. "It's a description…of my brother."

"Yep, and look what he's wanted for," Heyes prompted.

Kid read the poster then turned wide, disbelieving eyes on his partner, "Murder!?"

"And look there," Heyes pointed to the name scribbled in the corner of the poster. "It says John Curry…Obviously the sheriff has put two and two together and come up with John. Now we've just got to figure out what the truth of the matter really is."

"There's no way he could've done it. I know it's been a while and we don't really know each other at all, but he just isn't the kind. You and me, we're the ones who turned into thieves, not him."

Heyes sat thoughtfully for a moment, his head in his hands, "I don't think he's capable of cold-blooded murder either, Kid, but there's something more here. How did he say his son died?"

"Fever," Kid replied carefully.

Heyes cocked his head and looked at his partner, "Seems quite a coincidence to me. I think we're going to have to have a talk with your long-lost brother tomorrow."

Kid nodded and sighed heavily, "Yeah, I guess so. We could still ride out, couldn't we? They don't really need us here."

"I think they do. Especially now that we've found this," he gestured to the wanted poster.

Kid hung his head in disappointment.

"Kid, he's your brother. We can't let him hang for murder, not if he didn't do it…Even if he did do it. He's family. We owe him this."

Kid threw his hat on the floor and sat down heavily on his cot, "I don't owe him a damned thing. All those years we spent in that orphanage and he didn't see fit to show his face. Never even bothered to see if we were ok, if we were being looked after. He didn't care Heyes. He was only concerned with himself."

Heyes shook his head, "What are you talking about?"

Kid fixed his passion filled blue eyes on Heyes, "I wrote to him…over and over again, and never once did I hear anything back. He just forgot about us."

"You wrote…" Heyes began softly, "You were just a kid, barely able to put words on paper. How did you mail your letters? Could you trust the adults to send them on for you? How did you even know you were sending them to the right place? John was in the army, fighting the war, he moved around all the time. The mail was probably months behind with everything that was going on."

Kid hung his head, his hands coming up to cover his ears, "Heyes, I know what's what. I've lived with this for years; don't try to tell me different now."

Heyes reached out and put a hand on Kid's knee, "I'm not gonna try to tell you different. It's something I guess you've gotta learn for yourself. Just talk to him Kid. Tell him what's been bothering you. See what his side of the story is."

Kid raised his head and met his partner's sympathetic gaze. He shook his head then turned to grab up the blankets off the bed.

"Where're you going?" Heyes asked his stubborn younger cousin.

"I'm going to sleep with the horses," Kid stalked from the room, leaving Heyes holding the stolen wanted poster in his hands.


End file.
